UPDATE 1-Canada's Goldcorp, Teck team up to develop Chile mine projects

(Adds details on project location, size)
By Susan Taylor
TORONTO, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Goldcorp Inc G.TO and Teck
Resources Ltd TCKb.TO will form a joint venture to develop
neighboring mines in Chile to cut costs as metal prices languish
at multiyear lows, the Canadian miners said on Thursday.
Named Project Corridor, the combination of Goldcorp's El
Morro gold and copper project with Teck's Relincho copper and
molybdenum mine targets initial capital costs of $3.5 billion to
bring the properties to production. Earlier studies put El
Morro's development cost at $3.9 billion and Relincho's at $4.5
billion.
Under the development plan, a conveyor will transport ore
from El Morro to a single line mill at Relincho. The two
projects are about 40 kilometers (25 miles) apart, in the Huasco
Province in Chile.
Mining executives have spoken for years about the benefits
of teaming up on projects, but weak metal prices and soaring
development costs in recent years have made joint ventures even
more attractive.
Goldcorp Chief Executive Officer Chuck Jeannes told Reuters
last year that developing El Morro and Relincho with Teck was
"the kind of thing one might want to look at."
With a single desalination plant, port, transmission line
and concentrator, the joint venture will reduce infrastructure
requirements, the companies said in a statement. The two mines
will also use a common tailings facility at the Relincho site.
A phased mine construction will also allow future expansions
to be funded from project cash flows, reducing initial funding
requirements, the companies said.
Also on Thursday, Goldcorp said it had acquired the 30
percent interest in El Morro that it did not own from New Gold
Inc NGD.TO for $90 million in cash and a 4 percent gold stream
on future production.
El Morro contains about 8.9 million ounces of proven and
probable gold reserves and about 6.5 billion pounds of copper.
Relincho contains 10.1 billion pounds of proven and probable
copper reserves and 464 million pounds of molybdenum.
Goldcorp withdrew its environmental impact study for El
Morro last November after Chile's Supreme Court halted
development, saying local indigenous groups that oppose it must
be better consulted.
The company said at the time that it would focus on a new
development plan for the project that meets its target for
investment returns.